OTL: Will Ravens Defense Catch Up with Offense Soon?

It was another positive week as we prepare to head to Tampa for a Monday night shutdown with the Bucs. The Ravens suffered no significant injuries last week, and they may be close to getting a member back to the secondary:

Ravens DL Broderick Washington (knee) and CB Arthur Maulet (knee/hamstring) both returned to practice.

Three Ravens I didn’t see: WR Deonte Harty, LB Malik Harrison (groin), DL Brent Urban.

— Jeff Zrebiec (@jeffzrebiec) October 17, 2024

To be honest, I have no idea how this will effect the back-end rotation. Arthur Maulet should certainly benefit a secondary that’s searching for answers, but the issues that are hurting the Ravens are not talent-related, but due to poor communication. Even in some reps from last week, when they avoided giving up the huge chunk plays, you see constant communication issues. There was a play that went to Austin Ekeler where you can see Trenton Simpson trying to tell the defense that he is motioning and to watch out for him, yet nobody moves, and Ekeler gets free for big yards.

Why didn’t Kyle Van Noy respond to Simpson’s communication? Is KVN, an edge rusher, supposed to cover a receiving back in Eckeler? On Terry McLaurin‘s fourth-down touchdown, the Ravens played man, letting Jayden Daniels effectively choose his matchup, which he did perfectly.

These are the deep-rooted issues with the Ravens defense.

Another issue is the lack of play-making on the back end of the defense. The Ravens got a gift of a pick from Daniels, and Ar’Darius Washington dropped it. While Washington punted and the offense put a long TD drive together anyway, the drop cost them big field position, which could matter in tighter games.

Again, is Maulet going to fix that? Maybe the communication gets better, and perhaps him being on the field will get some other players who will not be named in the safety room off the field, but the more I watch the Ravens defense, the more I understand that this isn’t about talent, it’s about communication and getting more comfortable in Zach Orr’s scheme. I bring this up because I worry about this defense going into Tampa and having to play this hot Bucs offense, which specializes in making opponents pay for playing too aggressively, and requires good tackling and communication to slow down. Those are two things that have been lacking from Baltimore so far.

In order to win this game, the Ravens might have to score 35-40 points, and while they can do it, that shouldn’t be this team’s identity. The team should be built around an amazing offense with a Defense that can get stops and turnovers, and they haven’t done that, despite the four straight W’s.

One thing the Ravens could have going their way is this:

#Bucs coach Todd Bowles said WR Mike Evans “tweaked” something in his leg that had been “nagging” but expects him to practice later this week.

— Rick Stroud (@NFLSTROUD) October 17, 2024

If the Bucs don’t have Mike Evans, that would be a massive swing to the Ravens’ side. It goes without saying that we don’t wish for injuries, but look: the D needs all the help they can get right now, and the Bucs not having Evans on the field is the kind of bounce they will welcome.

Speaking of the offense doing all the work during the four-game winning streak, look how good they’ve been when using 12,22,21 personnel.

Greg Roman sank so that Todd Monken could fly. pic.twitter.com/PVdu3WqsDa

— Marcus Whitman (@TFG_Football) October 16, 2024

They are in a different galaxy compared to everyone else. It doesn’t even look fair, and a massive shout out to Todd Monken for implementing this offense perfectly. It took two weeks to fix, but these last four games have been fantastic to watch, and this why right here. Teams are afraid of Derrick Henry and Lamar Jackson’s legs in heavy packages. The tight ends are eating through those heavy packages. Zay Flowers and Rashod Bateman are eating through them.

The NFL doesn’t know right now to stop this right now. Lamar didn’t just get the Robin to his Batman; he got his Superman in Derrick Henry. Through Henry, the Ravens also built the Justice League of weapons for Lamar, flying higher than before.

This is the Ravens’ dream scenario: an offense that takes all the good from Greg Roman and supplements it with a modern set of passing schemes.

We have found our identity on offense.

Let’s hope the defense follows shortly.

The post OTL: Will Ravens Defense Catch Up with Offense Soon? appeared first on Russell Street Report.

Source: https://russellstreetreport.com/2024/10/18/out-to-lunch/defense-offense/